Heynckes: Abramovich should keep Di Matteo
Reuters - Friday 18 May 2012, 13:21
Whether or not Bayern Munich beat
Chelsea in Saturday's Champions League final, their coach Jupp
Heynckes urged the English club to stick with Roberto Di Matteo
so the Italian does not suffer the experience he went through in
1998.
Heynckes guided Real Madrid to victory in the Champions
League final over Juventus 14 years ago and duly left the club
within 48 hours.
Di Matteo has transformed Chelsea's season since taking over
as caretaker manager after Andre Villas-Boas was sacked in
March, but there is no guarantee he will be offered the job
permanently even if Chelsea are crowned European champions for
the first time.
Although Chelsea won the FA Cup earlier this month and are
now within 90 minutes of what would be their greatest triumph,
the signals emanating from Stamford Bridge indicate that the
club's billionaire owner Roman Abramovich wants a more glitzy,
bigger name to fill the role.
Heynckes, 67, one of Europe's most experienced and
successful coaches, who would become only the fourth man to
guide two clubs to European Cup success, thinks letting Di
Matteo go would be a mistake.
"I think the position of Chelsea and Di Matteo can be
understood. Chelsea are a huge club, a top club in Europe, and
you will try to find the best possible coach, someone who has
already won something and already brought titles and has all the
attributes you need for this kind of job," he said.
"But Di Matteo makes an excellent impression on me and if I
was Abramovich, I would continue with this young man.
"He led Chelsea to the final with a calm head, and step by
step he established contact with the players. I think really,
until today, his work has been outstanding and no matter if they
win or not, I hope he stays there because there is a need for
continuity."
Heynckes thought there were differences between his
departure from Real in 1998 and the situation Di Matteo is now
in, saying he knew from the previous December he was going to be
sacked and would have left anyway.
Di Matteo's position has been strengthened since he began to
breathe new life into Chelsea's season after Villas-Boas's
departure, and all he has said in response to hundreds of
questions about his future is: "lets wait and see."
Although Chelsea finished sixth in the Premier League, their
lowest position for a decade, and will miss out on the Champions
League next season if they lose on Saturday, he has certainly
restored their pride and self-belief.
They have lost only three times in 20 matches in all
competitions since Di Matteo took over and he gained widespread
respect for masterminding their semi-final victory over
Barcelona.
For that alone, besides being a former Chelsea player, many
fans believe Abramovich should at least give him a chance in the
role permanently. Clearly, so does Heynckes.